OUR TEAM in Vancouver Drug Rehab

Dr. Siavash Jafari

MD

Dr. Siavash Jafari is an MD with 18 years of clinical and research experience. Dr. Jafari graduated from medical school in 1999. He pursued masters of clinical epidemiology. He then obtained his specialty training in Public Health and Preventive Medicine followed by fellowship in Mental Health and Addiction at UBC. He is a board certified physician and a fellow member of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada and is a board certified and member of the American Board of the Addiction Medicine.

Dr. Jafari has practiced and conducted research in areas of addiction medicine, mental health, preventive medicine, and chronic pain. He has published over thirty peer reviewed articles on a variety of health topics and has been a presenter in more than fifty scientific conferences and events. He is a peer reviewer for multiple scientific medical journals.

Dr. Jafari works in multiple government-run medical clinics, detoxes and recovery programs. He is an experienced physician in the areas of mental health, addiction and chronic pain.

John A. Paterson

MA, Program Director

For the past 41 years John has pursued an interdisciplinary
study of: cultural anthropology, psychology, philosophy,
theology, spirituality, mythology, addiction recovery, family
systems, clinical therapy, leadership, and systemic change to
understand how and why people make the choices they do.
John holds a Master’s degree in Leadership and has received
120 Hrs of therapeutic training in Satir Transformational
Systemic Therapy. Following the publication of his first book Reclaiming the life we lost along
the way (2014) John launched a series of public workshops based on his book and his personal
and professional expertise in the fields of addiction recovery and human development.

In his current role as Program Director, John draws on his 41 years of addiction recovery, 20
years of corporate experience, and 15 years as a human development specialist. John’s highest
priority is to compassionately explore, guide and support people towards the realization of the
quality of life they yearn for.

Jyoti Gill

MA, Registered Clinical Counsellor

She has developed a strong cultural competency through working with diverse populations and volunteering abroad. Jyoti works in collaboration with her clients to establish a therapeutic style that is suited to their unique needs.

Through her clinical and personal experience, Jyoti has found that lasting change requires a commitment to explore deeper issues related to attachment, values, and one’s sense of purpose and meaning in life.

Jyoti works alongside clients to target these issues so that their healing and progress in therapy is long-lasting. Jyoti’s therapeutic style includes:

Jyoti holds an M.A. in Counselling Psychology from Adler University in Vancouver.

Jeffrey Hayward

CCAC ICADC – Addiction Counsellor

After Jeff received his diploma in Advanced Business Menagement and E-commerce, he enjoyed a lengthy and successful career in business operations until his battles with addiction destroyed him. It was then his incredible transformation began with his recovery.

Since then Jeff has held different roles in non-profit housing and support society’s, transition housing and residential addiction treatment.

Jeff’s training and experience have provided him with opportunities to work in areas of early recovery which include:

He approaches addiction with a therapeutic narrative and trauma-informed path, guiding clients to understand the causes of addiction and empowering them for long-term success.

Jeff has advanced his dedication and motivation by working with the families that have suffered along with their loved one in addiction and by supporting the family unit in the healing process. A married father, Jeff has firsthand experience around the impact of addiction and recovery on relationships and has intensely studied evidence-based strategies to induce positivity and hope.

He is currently working towards his International Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor Designation (ICADC).

Jeff continues to further his Counseling education and skills through programs and workshops with a strong emphasis on concurrent disorders and trauma-informed practice.

Anya Schecter

Administrator and Operations Manager

Anya brings over a decade of administrative experience in accounting, sales and system development and implementation. Prior to joining the Inspire Change, Health and Wellness team, Anya was the leader of an events company as the Sales and Operations Manager, doubling the organizations size in her first year. Anya also was the District Program Development and Training Manager for Blockbuster Canada, who’s role was creating the training manuals for all of 13 stores of her district, and overseeing implementation and quality maintenance.

She has a strong capacity for implementing and developing systems and procedures that support an organization in their ability to provide the best possible services. Anya develops and implements budgets, aids in oversight and business development, as well as handling financial matters, such as client billing, account payable and payroll.

Anya has also developed areas of specialization such as facility legislation, accreditation procedure (CARF), human resources employment law, legal drafting and staff training. Anya is responsible for keeping all aspects of the organization running smoothly.

Fillip Gorecki

Head Chef

Chef believes that positivity and friendship are the most earnest motivations for exercising creativity in the kitchen. As a European raised in Canada, he credits his gourmet culinary range to a great many teachers who have welcomed him into their kitchens throughout his career. He began his culinary journey in Vancouver working in trending restaurants of different stripes. From comfort food, Asian cuisine, to French fare, he hasn’t shied away from gaining artistic knowledge and skill.

While the experience of Head Chef and Sous Chef in popular restaurants were significant to his career, making personal connections and healing people with cuisine has been of paramount importance to his culinary journey and him personally.

Stefanie

Yogini Certified

Being in recovery herself and having battled and recovered from a drug addiction and eating disorder, Stefanie is humbled and grateful to share her love for yoga with others in recovery from addiction. She believes the practice of yoga is a way of finding peace. She also believes it is an outlet to practice peace and to care for oneself. Yoga also helps to strengthen and heal a person physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Stefanie has been teaching yoga since 2009. In addition to her work and passion for yoga, Stefanie has worked as a support worker in the addictions field for women’s treatment centers for the past ten years.

She is certified in Bikram yoga and has a 200hr certification through the Yoga Alliance. She also has special training in kids and trauma-sensitive yoga.

Natasha

Yoga Therapy

Natasha began practicing yoga in 2006 due to nagging lower back pain from working alongside her husband in their hardwood flooring business. She quickly discovered how much of a positive impact it had on her life both mentally and physically. She wanted to share her passion and practice with others so after 6 years of steady practice, she went to Bikram yoga teacher training for 9 weeks in Los Angeles, California. After that, she completed a 200 hr teacher training in Hatha and Vinyasa at Karma teachers yoga school in Vancouver BC as well as a yin yoga teacher training and studied under Jolene Bayda.
She is a compassionate teacher who believes that how you do anything is how you do everything. She teaches breathing techniques to stay calm through discomfort on and off the mat. Natasha also combines breathe with movement to practice presence and mental focus.